Chuck vs the Day After
by Lemz
Summary: The day after Chuck reuploaded the Intersect and Bryce Larkin took his last breath, team Bartowski is together again, and they've got new problems to deal with. This was originally intended as a one-shot, but I decided to lengthen it.


**A/N: Hey guys, thanks for taking the time out of your day to read this. I'm hoping this isn't too bad, as this is my first foray into fanfiction in about five years. After season two ended I began looking for my Chuck fix here, and you guys have certainly delivered. After a while I started feeling bad about not contributing, so here's the first of several stories I've got built up in my head. I'll probably finish this one before I publish anything else I write. **

**This was originally meant to be a one-shot, but I decided I'd much rather explore what happens throughout the day between the members of the team. Updates will hopefully be at least once a week (if not every few days).**

**Now, enjoy the story! **

Dawn on a Funeral Day

Chuck awoke in Casa Bartowski (or rather, Casa Awesome, since Chuck would hopefully be moving out soon), feeling sore and sick. The events of the previous night were like a nightmare. Just when Chuck thought his tenure as the Intersect was over, he'd been thrown right back into the world of espionage and secrecy. To the former Nerd Herder, this was a depressing fact. He now had the new and improved (though the latter was debatable in Chuck's opinion) Intersect in his head. The modifications made were ones that altered many facets of Chuck's life; a perfect example was his recent display of Kung Fu excellence. Any other little "upgrades" were as of yet not known to him.

Life was about to get a lot harder for Chuck Bartowski, what with the new Intersect in his head, and the unearthing of the Ring. He had a lot riding on his shoulders again. It appeared he'd have to be the hero the government thought he was; the hero they wanted him to be. Fortunately he had two amazing allies, Colonel John Casey and Agent Sarah Walker. They were his teammates, his friends. Of course, Chuck hoped that Sarah could still be more than just a friend; the previous night's events jeopardized and/or reversed everything they'd worked for over the past two years.

Friends. The word brought Bryce Larkin to mind. Bryce Larkin, college buddy, nemesis, and when it all came down to the wire, a true friend. Everything he'd done was to protect Chuck, and now he was gone. Dead. No longer on this plane of existence. He took his last breaths right in front of Chuck, the last person he would ever see. He spent them telling Chuck to destroy the new Intersect. Then Chuck watched the light fade from his eyes. He died, and this time no Fulcrum team or any team from any agency would be able to bring him back. Chuck's thoughts lingered on this, and he sat up, putting his face in his hands. Slowly, his shoulders started to heave up and down.

Chuck cried. He cried for the loss of a hero. He cried for the loss of an ally. He cried for the true loss of his innocence. But most of all, he cried for the loss of a friend. A friend who had saved his life so many times, yet Chuck couldn't seem to return the favor. At Stanford, Bryce looked out for him. When Bryce resurfaced, he looked out for Chuck. Each time he came back into Chuck's life, he always had Chuck's safety at heart. Now he couldn't do that for his old college friend. All the secrets and skills in Chuck's head couldn't change that.

Chuck looked up when he heard a noise coming from the courtyard. Sarah was headed toward the Morgan Door. Chuck stood up quickly and put some clothes on, then headed to the window to greet her. He opened it before she even knocked. She smiled briefly, but saw the tear streaks and red, puffy eyes that truly accentuated his forlorn face. He opened his mouth to speak, but Sarah grabbed a hold of him and brought him close. She gently put her head on his chest.

He'd stopped crying by this time, but his voice was still shaky as he tried to apologize. "I-I'm sorry Sarah. I'm _so_ sorry. I-" he stopped when he felt her shoulders go up and down. In the time he'd known Sarah, he'd seen tears in her eyes, but he'd never seen her cry until now. It frightened him to see her so upset, but that she would come to him for comfort filled him with warmth.

As much as the young CIA agent hated to admit it, she was very vulnerable at the moment, both because Bryce, a former partner as well as a former lover was dead, but also because she felt like she'd failed to protect Chuck when it was her duty to do so. Not only that, but he was someone she'd grown to love in spite of all her CIA training, every part of growing up that taught her not to get attached; with Chuck, getting attached was inevitable. The feeling of failure overwhelmed her, and she lost control of her tear ducts.

Chuck felt the warm moisture of her tears on his chest. He just stood there and comforted the gorgeous blonde as best he could. Little did he know, it was all she needed from him; all she wanted. They stood together, motionless, until Sarah stopped crying.

Tired already, they made their way to the bed. Sarah laid down in Chuck's arms, and before long the two had fallen asleep. They slept for what seemed like years to Sarah, but to Chuck it was like blinking. His stirring woke his companion, which he felt eternally sorry for doing. Still, Chuck was amazed, yet again, at how beautiful she looked, even after both crying and sleeping. Her eyes fluttered open, and the first thing she saw was Chuck. This brought a smile to her face. The two slowly sat up, drinking in their first few conscious moments of the afternoon. Both Chuck and Sarah felt rejuvenated after their nap. Their eyes met, and without a word, they both knew what was in store that day.

The mood at Bryce Larkin's second funeral was far heavier than the first time around. It was just Chuck and Sarah this time. They stood at Bryce's grave in silence. There was no man of the cloth to give a speech, no ceremony. Just two people who knew the real Bryce Larkin better than anyone else.

Off to their left, someone was slowly trudging toward the grave. It was John Casey. As surprised as the two were to see him, somehow Chuck expected it. After all, he and Bryce were both working for the same goal. Casey nodded to his fellow Team Bartowski members as he neared. Sarah returned the nod; Chuck did a kind of half-wave. He was certainly glad to see the Colonel.

The two men shook hands, and then Casey did something very uncharacteristic: he hugged Chuck. Though he wasn't one for words, he said, "I know how close you used to be to him, Bartowski. I'm sorry it had to end this way."

Chuck was comforted by Casey's presence. "Thanks, Casey," he said, and knelt down to the headstone. "Don't you think we should say something? It doesn't have to be a little speech or anything, I just want to show some respect to Bryce. His last funeral didn't really do him much justice," Chuck paused, reflecting on how odd that statement sounded. "I guess what I'm trying to say is that we should really remember who he was. I guess I'll start. When I met Bryce at Stanford, it was easily one of the best things to ever happen to me. He was my best friend. I'd never met anyone like him. I thought we'd start up a software business together or something, you know, be business partners and get rich. Then he got me kicked out of school and, I thought, took Jill from me. It was one of the worst experiences of my life. I lost everything; I thought he took it all away from me. It took me over five years to get over the hurt he put me through. Then when he sent the Intersect to me, and you two came into my life," Chuck motioned to his handlers, though there was a little more emphasis on Sarah, "it brought up all the old emotions. I didn't think I'd ever get past it. I mean, I was working a dead-end job with nowhere to go. When I found out why he got me kicked out of Stanford, there was still a little bit of me that didn't want to forgive him, especially when I thought he was going to come between my almost-relationship with you, Sarah. After a while, I guess I learned to forget about it. Getting closure with Jill didn't hurt, either. But last night, when I found out that he knew about Orion even in Stanford… well, I guess that was when I realized that everything that he'd done at Stanford, and telling Fulcrum he was the Intersect, and even when he worked with us, he did it to try and protect me. I hated him all this time because I didn't know that he was easily one of the best friends I've ever had, and I didn't even get to tell him. I guess I just needed to say that out loud, to tell someone. I wish I had one more day. Even an hour would help. I'd take five minutes."

Sarah grabbed his hand and squeezed it firmly, to let him know she was there for him. Now it was her turn. Sarah, not being as in-tune with her feelings, had considerably less to say, "Bryce was my partner, someone I trusted with my life. Somewhere down the line we ended up romantically involved, which even for spies isn't advisable, and I cared more about him than I did myself, I guess. When he supposedly went rogue, I didn't know what to do. And after I met you, Chuck, it made me even more confused. When Bryce came back it only hurt more, to know that he didn't even tell his partner what he was doing. I tried to shut the two of you out. After I realized I shouldn't do that, he was right back in our lives during another assignment, still trying to rekindle a flame that should just be left alone. He knew how I felt about you all along, Chuck. Finally, he realized it and let it go. Still, I know he cared for me until the end, and I'll always care for him, at least as a partner and as a close friend." Her eyes were tearing up quickly, and anything else she had to say was stopped by the lump in her throat.

"Well, Walker, are you admitting that you're compromised? Am I going to have to report this to the General?" Casey asked jokingly, lightening the mood. This time, even Sarah laughed. The colonel decided he might as well say something, "Well, I guess…" he trailed off, hesitating as though the following words were painful to speak, "I'm glad I didn't succeed in killing Bryce. He was a real patriot, and it was always entertaining to serve with him in the time that he was with us… well, most of the time anyway." Casey was short, sweet, and to the point as always. Still, the fact that he said anything at all did not go unnoticed. Chuck patted his compatriot on the back with his free hand. The three stood in the middle of the cemetery, the only people there on that particular day. It was better that way; they felt that they didn't have to keep up some sort of a cover for something so real, so personal.

They decided to stay a while and pay their last respects to their fallen comrade.

**A/N: Well, that was the first chapter. I really hope you guys liked it. If so, please R&R and tell me what you liked or didn't like. If you didn't like it... go ahead and R&R anyway to tell me what I need to improve on. I can take some (constructive) criticism. I can't think of anything else I'd like to say right now, so if there's anything I need to say I'll just do so next chapter.**

**Adios, ladies and gents!**


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